It was recently announced by the World Bank that the Kenyan national energy utility has officially connected 150,000 households in the countries urban slums to the electricity grid. Before May 2014, this number used to be a mere 5,000. This huge improvement is largely due to attempts to subsidize families’ grid connection fees which can often reach as much as $400 per family. The NGO, Innovations for Poverty Action, is currently trialing this subsidy technique throughout the rural parts of Western Kenya. Bringing electricity to the rural slums creates a clear improvement for the everyday life of families living in poverty. Lighting is cheaper and safer, communications are greatly improved through the ability to charge mobile phones, and radio and TV allow them to be better connected to the outside world.